Supreme Court of Florida

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No. SC2024-0237

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IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO RULES REGULATING THE FLORIDA 

BAR – RULES 6-3.5 AND 6-3.6.

August 22, 2024

PER CURIAM.

The Florida Bar petitions the Court to amend Rules Regulating 

The Florida Bar 6-3.5 (Standards for Certification) and 6-3.6 

(Recertification).1 The proposed amendments were approved by the

Board of Governors of The Florida Bar on a voice vote without 

objection, and consistent with rule 1-12.1(g), the Bar published 

formal notice of its intent to file the petition in The Florida Bar 

News. The notice directed interested parties to file comments 

directly with the Court. One comment was received from the Public 

Interest Law Section. The Bar filed a response to the comment. 

1. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 15, Fla. Const.; see also

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 1-12.1.
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Having considered the Bar’s petition, the comment filed, and 

the Bar’s response, we amend rules 6-3.5 and 6-3.6 as proposed by 

the Bar. We discuss the more significant changes to both rules 

below. 

First, existing rule 6-3.5(e) (Certification Without Examination) 

is relocated to subdivision (d)(1) and is retitled “Limitations on 

Qualifying for Certification Without Examination.” The existing 

provisions within subdivision (d) are renumbered and relettered 

accordingly. 

Next, new rules 6-3.5(e) (Good Cause) and 6-3.6(d) (Good 

Cause) are added. Both rules standardize the factors the Board of 

Legal Specialization and Education and the individual certification 

committees must consider in assessing whether good cause exists 

to waive applicable certification and recertification standards. 

New subdivisions (e) (Practice of Law for Recertification), (f) 

(Waiver of Substantive Requirements), and (g) (Waiver for Health 

Reasons) are added to rule 6-3.6. New rule 6-3.6(e) provides that 

service as a judge, administrative law judge, court commissioner, 

master, referee, magistrate, or arbitrator as applicable in the 
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individual certification area may constitute the practice of law for 

recertification purposes on the request of an applicant.

A certification committee is required under new rule 6-3.6(f) to 

waive the quantitative practice requirements for any applicant who 

has been continuously certified for 14 years and otherwise meets 

the requirements for the certification. Quantitative practice 

requirements include items such as a minimum number of trials, 

hearings, or matters handled. It does not include the percentageof-time requirement to demonstrate substantial involvement.

And under new rule 6-3.6(g), a certification committee may 

waive compliance with any portion of the quantitative practice 

criteria for an otherwise qualified applicant who is not able to meet 

the recertification requirements for health reasons for good cause 

shown.

The Rules Regulating The Florida Bar are hereby amended as 

set forth in the appendix to this opinion. Deletions are indicated by 

struck-through type, and new language is indicated by 

underscoring. The amendments become effective October 21, 2024,

at 12:01 a.m.
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It is so ordered.

MUÑIZ, C.J., and CANADY, LABARGA, COURIEL, GROSSHANS, 

FRANCIS, and SASSO, JJ., concur.

THE FILING OF A MOTION FOR REHEARING SHALL NOT ALTER 

THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THESE AMENDMENTS.

Original Proceeding – Florida Rules Regulating The Florida Bar

Roland Sanchez-Medina, Jr., President, Rosalyn Sia Baker-Barnes, 

President-elect, Joshua E. Doyle, Executive Director, and Elizabeth 

Clark Tarbert, Division Director, Lawyer Regulation, The Florida 

Bar, Tallahassee, Florida,

for Petitioner

Anthony C. Musto on behalf of the Florida Bar Public Interest Law 

Section, Hallandale, Florida,

Responding with comments
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APPENDIX

RULE 6-3.5. STANDARDS FOR CERTIFICATION

(a) [No Change]

(b) Eligibility for Application. A member in good standing 

of The Florida Bar who is currently engaged in the practice of law 

and who meets the area’s standards may apply for certification. 

From the date the application is filed to the date the certificate is 

issued, theThe applicant must continue to practice law and remain 

a member in good standing of The Florida Bar from the date the 

application is filed to the date the certificate is issued. The 

certificate issued by the board of legal specialization and education 

shall states that the lawyer is a “Board Certified ([area of 

certification)] Lawyer.”

(c) Minimum Requirements for Qualifying for 

Certification With Examination. Minimum requirements for 

qualifying for certification by examination are as follows:.

(1) Minimum Years of Practice of Law. AThe applicant 

must have a minimum of 5 years substantially engaged in the 

practice of law. The “practice of law” means legal work performed 

primarily for purposes of rendering legal advice or representation. 

Service as a judge of any court of record shall be deemed to 

constitutes the practice of law for certification purposes. 

Employment by the government of the United States, any state 

(including subdivisions of the state such as counties or 

municipalities), or the District of Columbia, and employment by a 

public or private corporation or other business shall be deemed to 

constitutes the practice of law for certification purposes if the 

individual was required as a condition of employment to be a 

member of the bar of any state or the District of Columbia. If 

otherwise permitted in the particular standards for the area in 

which certification is sought, theThe practice of law in a foreign 

nation state, U.S. territory, or U.S. protectorate, or employment in a 

position that requires as a condition of employment that the 

employee be licensed to practice law in suchthat foreign nation 
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state, U.S. territory, or U.S. protectorate, shall be countedcounts as 

up to, but no more than, 3 of the 5 years required for certification if 

provided in the applicable certification area standards.

(2) Substantial Involvement. A satisfactory showing 

ofThe applicant must demonstrate competence and substantial 

involvement in the particularapplicable certification area for which 

certification is sought during 3 of the last 5 years preceding the 

application for certification.

(3) Continuing Legal Education. A satisfactory showing 

of suchThe applicant must complete the continuing legal education 

requirement in a particular field of law for whichthe applicable

certification is soughtarea as set by that area’s standards. but in no 

eventNo certification area’s standards may be less than 10 

certification hours per year. Accreditation of educational hours is 

subject to policies established by the applicable certification 

committee or the board of legal specialization and education.

(4) Examination. PassingThe applicant must pass a 

written and/or oral examination that is applied uniformly to all 

applicants toand is designed to demonstrate sufficient knowledge, 

skills, and proficiency, professional responsibility, and ethics in the 

applicable certification area for which certification is sought and in 

the various areas relating to such field. The examination shall 

include professional responsibility and ethics. The award of an 

LL.M. degree from an approved law school in the applicable 

certification area for which certification is sought within 8 years of 

application may substitute as the written examination required in 

this subdivision if the area’s standards so provide.

(5) Current Certification by Approved Organizations. 

CurrentThe board of legal specialization and education may approve 

substitution of current certification by an approved organization in 

the applicable certification area for which certification is sought 

within 5 years of filing an application may, at the option of the 

certification committee, substitute asfor partial equivalent credit, 

including the written examination required in subdivision (c)(4). 

Approval will be by the board of legal specialization and education 
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following a positive or negative recommendation from at the 

certification committee’s recommendation.

(6) Peer Review. Peer review shall beis used to solicit 

information to assess competence in the specialty field, and 

professionalism and ethics in the practice of law. To qualify for 

board certification, anthe applicant must be recognized as having 

achieved a level of competence indicating special knowledge, skills, 

and proficiency in handling the usual matters in the specialty field. 

The applicant shallmust also be evaluated as to character, ethics, 

and reputation for professionalism. An applicant otherwise 

qualified may be denied certification on the basis of peer review. 

Certification may also be withheld pending the outcome of any 

disciplinary complaint or malpractice action.

As part of the peer review process, the board of legal 

specialization and education and its area committees shallmust

review an applicant’s professionalism, ethics, and disciplinary 

record. SuchThis review shallmust include both disciplinary 

complaints and malpractice actions. The process may also include 

solicitation of public input and independent inquiry apart from 

written referencesreview of completed peer review forms. Peer review 

is mandatory for all applicants and may not be eliminated by 

equivalents.

(d) Limitations on and Minimum Requirements for 

QualificationQualifying for Certification Without Examination.

(1) Limitations on Qualifying for Certification Without 

Examination. When certification without examination is available in 

an area, it may be granted only as follows.

(A) Two-Year Post-Approval Period. Certification 

may be granted to individuals who apply within 2 years after the 

date on which the applicable certification area is approved by the 

Supreme Court of Florida.
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(B) Individual Certification Standards.

Certification may be granted as otherwise permitted in the 

particular standards for the applicable certification area.

(2) Minimum Requirements for Qualifying for 

Certification Without Examination. When certification without 

examination is available in an area, the minimum requirements for 

such certification are as follows:.

(1A) Practice of Law. The applicant must 

demonstrate a minimum of 20 years in the practice of law as 

defined above on a full-time basis.

(2B) Substantial Involvement. The applicant must 

demonstrate a satisfactory showing of competence and substantial 

involvement in the particularapplicable certification area for which 

certification is sought during 5 of the last 10 years, including the 

year immediately preceding the application for certification. 

Substantial involvement in the particular area of law for the 1 year 

immediately preceding the application may be waived for good 

cause shown.

(3C) Continuing Legal Education. The applicant 

must completea satisfactory showing of such continuing legal 

education in a particular field of law for whichthe applicable

certification areais sought as set by that area’s standards but in no 

event less thanof at least 15 hours per year.

(4D) Peer Review. The applicant must undergo peer 

review as set forth above.satisfactory peer review and professional 

ethics record in accordance with subdivision (c)(6); and

(5F) Fees. The applicant must payment of any 

required fees required by the plan.

(e) Certification Without Examination. When certification 

without examination is available in an area, it may be granted only:
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(1) to individuals who apply within 2 years after the 

date on which the particular area is approved by the Supreme 

Court of Florida; or

(2) as otherwise permitted in the particular standards 

for the area for which certification is sought.

(e) Good Cause. In determining good cause under this 

chapter, the board of legal specialization and education and 

applicable certification committee must consider the applicant’s 

supervisory responsibility in the certification area; the applicant’s 

special knowledge, skills, and proficiency in the certification area; 

the nature and complexity of matters in the certification area 

handled by the applicant; the number of matters in the certification 

area handled by the applicant over the course of the applicant’s 

career; and any career or other factors relevant to the applicant’s 

request for a waiver of compliance.

RULE 6-3.6. RECERTIFICATION

(a) – (c) [No Change]

(d) Good Cause. In determining good cause under this 

chapter, the board of legal specialization and education and 

applicable certification committee must consider the applicant’s 

supervisory responsibility in the certification area; the applicant’s 

special knowledge, skills, and proficiency in the certification area; 

the nature and complexity of matters in the certification area 

handled by the applicant; the number of matters in the certification 

area handled by the applicant over the course of the applicant’s 

career; and any career or other factors relevant to the applicant’s 

request for a waiver of compliance.

(e) Practice of Law for Recertification. Service as a judge, 

administrative law judge, court commissioner, master, referee, 

magistrate, or arbitrator as applicable in the applicable certification

area constitutes the practice of law for recertification purposes at 

the applicant’s request if the applicant otherwise meets all 
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requirements for the applicable certification area including the 

percentage of time required for substantial involvement in the 

applicable certification area.

(f) Waiver of Substantive Requirements. The applicable 

certification committee must waive the quantitative practice 

requirements for any applicant who has been continuously certified 

for 14 years and otherwise meets all requirements for the applicable 

certification area at the applicant’s request. Quantitative practice 

requirements do not include the percentage-of-time requirement for 

substantial involvement, but do include, for example, minimum 

number of matters, trials, or hearings specified in individual 

certification areas.

(g) Waiver for Health Reasons. The applicable certification 

committee may waive compliance with any portion of the 

quantitative practice criteria in an individual recertification cycle for 

an otherwise qualified applicant who is not able to meet the 

recertification requirements for health reasons for good cause 

shown on a special application form. Quantitative practice 

requirements do not include the percentage-of-time requirement for 

substantial involvement, but do include, for example, minimum 

number of matters, trials, or hearings specified in individual 

certification areas. In determining good cause under this rule, the 

certification committee will consider, if the applicant requests, the 

factors listed to be considered under good cause above and the 

length and severity of the applicant’s health issues.